Snap fastener



A. R. BURRELL.

SNAP FASTENER. APPLICATION FILED QCT. so, 1920.

Patented Feb. 28, 1922.

, 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

A. R. BURRELL.

SNAP FASTENER.

I APPLICATION FILED 0CT. 30.1920- UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AUSTIN ROY BURRELL, OFBROCKLYN, NEW YORK.

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Application filectOetober 30, 1920. Serial No. 420 620.

To all whom it may concern-.-

Be it known that I, Ausrnv For BennnLL, a citizen of theUnited States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings, State of .LTBW York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Snap Fasteners; and I do hereby declare the following to be'a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,.such as will enable others skilled in the art to whichit appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to snap fasteners for garments.

At present there are on the market a number of different varieties of snap fasteners, and for some purposes such fasteners are widely used, but they have not yet become .a general substitute for buttons, although of lower cost and easier application. One of the chief reasons for this restriction in the use of snap fasteners is that none of the fasteners now on the market are well adapted to withstand the passage of the garment through the ordinary laundering apparatus without damage either to the fastener or to the garment. That is, the fastener is frequently flattened by the iron or mangle so that itwill not work, or the fastener is torn oii, frequently injuring the garment so as to make it difficultto repair.

The object of my invention, generally speaking, is to provide a fastener which may be employed upon garments generally, in lieu of buttons.

A. further objectof the invention is to provide a fastener for garment-s which has no projectingor fragile parts, and is consequently of such construction that it may be safely run between rollers, ironed, or subjected to the usual laundering processes with no danger of damaging or loosening the fastener.

A. further object of the invention is to provide a fastener of the above type which is compact in construction and which presents a neat appearance, so that it may be used on any type of garment desired.

A still furtherobject of the invention is to providea snap fastener of this type which necessitates no sewing or mutilation f the fabric for attaching it to the garment, and which may bequickly put on and conveniently used after being securedin position. e

' M invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which Figs. 1, 3, and

'7, and F 2, 4, 6 and 8 show, in section and plan, respectively, the four parts mak- 111g up one form of my improved fasteners; Fig. 9 shows in perspective the spring employed in this type of fastener; Fig. '10 shows in section the two parts forming the outer member of the fastener clamped to getheron the fabric; Fig. '11 is a similar VlGW Of the other member of the fastener; Fig. '12 is a similar view showing the two members of the fastener snapped together; Figs. 13, 15, 17 and 19, and Figs. 14:,16, 18 and 20 show, in section and plan. respectively, the four parts of another form of my improved fastener; Fig. 21 is a perspective view of the springeinployed in this fastener; Figs. '22, 23 and 2a are sectional views of the upper memberand lower member attached to the fabric and the two members snapped together, respectively; Figs. 25 through 37 are similar views of athird form of fastener; Figs. 29 and QTbeing sectional views of the same part but at right angles to each other; Fig. 88 is a sectional view of a modified form of upper member designed for permanent application to the garment: Fig. 89 is a plan view of the lower half of the member shown in Fig. 38; Figs. 40 and etl are sectional views of the two parts of a modified form of the under member of the fastener designed for cooperation with the upper member shown in Fig. 38; Figs. 42 and d3 show in, section and plan, respectively, a modification of the parts shown in F lg. 40; Fig. la shows a complete fastener made up of the parts shown in Figs. 38and 4C2 assembled and snapped together; Fig. 45 shows a modified form of the lower member of the fastenershown in Fig. 44; and Fig. 16 shows a modified form of fasteneradapted to .be sewed to the garment and used as an invisible fastener.

According to my invention each of the cooperating members of ;the.fastener consists of two parts to be clamped together with the fabric between them. The upper memberconsists of an upper binding piece 1 which is illustrated in vertical section and plan view in Figs. 1 and 2, respectively, and

an upper contact piece 2 similarly illustrated in Figs.'3 and 4.. The lower member consists of a lower Contact piece '3, shown in Figs. 5 and 6 and a lower binding piece 'yi shown in Figs. 7 and 8, these two parts cooperating to form the lower half of the but ton. The upper binding piece consists of a rounded shell 1, its upper surface being given a heavy coating of enamel for the purpose of securing satisfactory appearance, and a stud 5 secured to the center of the inner portion of theshell 1. 'The shell may also be made of pearl, hard rubber or other suitable material, or may be clothcovered to make the fastener appropriate for different kinds of fabric. This stud is provided with a conical head 6 and a cylindrical portion '7 forming a shoulder to engage the cooperating part of the contact piece 2. This contact piece consists of a shell 2 and an inwardly extending member having a hollow head 8 and a neck portion 9, which opens through the hole 10 in the shell 2. This opening 10 is partially obstructed by the metal pieces 11 which are stamped out of the material of the shell and bent inwardly through slots in the neck 9 as shown. 1

In attaching this half of the fastener to the fabric the upper contact piece is fitted within the upper binding piece with the fabrielQ between them, as shown in Fig. 10. The stud 5 is pushed through the fabric and is inserted into the neck 9, where it is held securely by the action of the shoulder 7 against the small pieces 11. The curvature of the shell 1 is slightly greater than that of the shell 2, and consequently shell 1 reacts against the contact piece and holds the shoulder 7 of the stud securely against its retaining piece.

The lower contact piece consists of shell 3 with its edges turned around to form the annular ledge 19, and a hollow inwardly extending member 13 opening through the shellld. The side walls of the member 14 are slotted at 20 to provide retaining shoulders 15 to cooperate with the lower binding member. This lower binding member consists of a shell or plate f having raised upon it the members 16 whose flanges 17 are adapted to engage with the shoulder 15 on the lower contact member. In applying the lower member to the fabric the parts 3 and a are fitted together as shown in Fig.11 and are held in engagement by the interlocking shoulders lo and flanges 17. A spring 18, shown in perspective in Fig. 9, is laid flat within the shell 3 of the lower contact member, where it is supported by t-he ledge 19, with its two ends lying across the slots 20 of the member 13.

In Fig. 12 the fastener is shown attached to the garment and snapped shut. The pressure of the spring 18 against the head 8 of the upper contact piece serves to retain the fastener in the locked position until a pull is exerted on the upper half of the button strong enough to bend aside the projecting arms 18 of the spring and allow the head 8 to be with-drawn. The force required to un-' fasten the device depends upon the strength of the spring arms, and consequently may be varied by employing springs of different strengths, or by bending the arms of a given spring. This feature may be made use of in applying the fastener to fabrics of different weights, a stronger spring being used in the case of heavy fabrics and a weaker spring in the case of lighter fabrics, so that in case of stress the fastener will unsnap before the fabric is torn.

Referring to Figs. 13 to 24 inclusive, a modification of my invention is shown, that provides a somewhat more substantial construction than that described above. The essential features of the fasteners are identical with those just described, and consist of upper and lower contact and binding pieces, and means for holding these parts in cooperation. The shell 1 of the upper binding piece is provided with prongs 21 having shoulders 22 for the purpose of engaging with the upper contact piece, itself comprising a shell 2 which is stamped in such man ner as to form a hollow cylinder 23 with a retaining shoulder 24: adapted to engage with flanges 22 of the upper binding piece. The upper binding piece and contact piece are shown assembled in Fig. 22 with the fab- Tie 12 between them, the action vbeing substantially as described above. The lower contact piece comprises a shell 3" which is stamped to form an annular receiving chamber 26 into which fits the extension on the upper contact member. This lower contact member is also provided with a hollow cylinder 27 serving as a shoulder to cooperate with the flanged arms 28 of the lower binding piece 1. These two members are shown assembled in Fig. 23 with the fabric between them, the action being substantially as described above. In Fig. 24: is shown the button completely assembled, attached to the fabric and fastened, the retaining force being furnished as before by means of spring 18 and overcome by direct pull exerted on the upper portion of the button.

The modification shown in Figs. 25 to 37 comprises substantially the same construction as has been described, but with a somewhat diflerent arrangement of parts. The upper binding piece 1 is provided with forked prongs 21 and the upper contact piece is stamped in such manner as to form an annular depression 29* having at its center the raised portion 30. This raised portion is provided with slots 31 and 32, the latter being for the purpose of cooperating with the lower contact piece for holding the fastener closed, and the former serving to admit the ends of the spring 18 for retaining the button in the locked position. The lower contact piece consists of an inwardly extending portion having a head 8 and a neck 9 opening through the shell at 10". This opening 10 is partially closed by the metal of the shell. The lower binding piece consists of the shell l and a stud 5" having a conical end 6" and a cylindrical shoulder portion '7 adapted to be inserted through the opening l0 and hold together the lower contact piece and binding piece in the same manner as has been previously described. In this form of fastener the upper binding piece 1 and lower binding piece f are split as shown so as to be expanded by the cooperating parts 2 and 3", respectively, when the fastener parts are applied, to better grip the fabric.

Figs. 35 to 37 inclusive show the parts of the fastener assembled and serve to illustrate the manner of cooperation of its various parts.

Figs. 38 to 4n show various modifications of difi'erent parts of the fastener which may be employed with advantage. Figs. 38 and 39'show a desi n of fastener particle larly adapted for factory application to ready made garments, the previously described fasteners being more particularly de signed for personal use, and for dressmakers,

tailors, etc. Fig. 38 shows the upper contact piece 2 and the upper binding piece 1 assembled. This is accomplished by compressing or shrinking the central socket 34 of the under or contacting piece 2 permanently upon the stud 33 of the upper art 1. Fig. 39 shows the binding piece 2 of this fastener detached. This member is slit into separate wings, in the same way as the outer member of the fastener illustrated in Figs. 25 to 37. This piece is normally flatter than the outer member, so that when the parts are clamped together the cloth will be tightly gripped between them. The outer rim of the shell 2 is turned up at 35 to form an annular receiving portion for the edge of the shell 1, to thereby better protect the fastener against damage during laundering, the turned up rim serving to prevent the point of an iron or other object from separating the upper part of the fastener from the cloth. Figs. 40 and 41 illustrate a type of lower contact piece and lower binding piece which may be used with the above described construction for the upper half of the fastener. The lower contact piece con sists essentially of theshell 3 and an inwardly extending portion 30 having two pairs of slots 31 and 82 at right angles to each other. The lower binding piece el is provided with arms 28, stamped out of the metal of the shell, which engage with the slots 32 to hold the parts of the fastener in the operative position, while the'ends of the springs extend across the slots 31 to engage the interlocked stud and socket of the upper member.

In Figs. 42 and 43 is shown a somewhat different type of construction which may be used for the lower half of the fastener and employed in cooperation with the upper half shown in Fig. 38. In this modification the lower contactpiece consists of a shell 3 with inwardly extending socket 3O slotted on two sides to be engaged by the arms 28 of the lower binding piece l. The inwardly extending portion 80 is also slotted on the two opposite sides to receive the bent ends of two tongues 36 which are stamped out of the metal of the shell and curved inwardly in the manner shown. This design eliminates the separate spring for engaging the opposite member of the fastener, and pro vides an excellent grip particularly with the the member shown in Fig. 88. These two members are shown combined in Fig. 4a.

In Fig. 45 there is shown a slight modification of this form of fastener. As here clown the spring tongues 36 which hold the two members of the fastener together are stamped out of the lower binding piece 4r instead of from the metal of the lower contact piece. The curved ends of the face 36 project through slots cut in the sides of the socket-30 to engage the stud on the upper member of the fastener.

In applying this fastener the projection on the upper binding piece is pushed through the upper part of the fabric, that is, the portion in which the but-ton holes would be made if ordinary buttons were used, and the upper contact piece is then pressed firmly in place, the parts being permanently connected together as has been described. The projecting prongs 28 of the lower binding piece are then pushed through the lower portion of the fabric and the lower contact piece pressed firmly into place. The lower member may be more firmly attached by clinching the ends of the prongs 28 by a suitable tool inserted in the middle opening of the projection 30 It will be noted that the projecting portions which are inserted in the fabric are small and that no part of the fabric need be cut away, or no sewing need be done in fastening the buttons to the garment.

'It will be noted that in all the different modifications so far described the fabric is securely clamped to the two parts of the fastener, the gripping surfaces of the fastener parts being at'the periphery and forming a complete circle so that there are no projecting edges by which the fastener may be caught and torn off the fabric. Moreover, both parts of the fastener present on their outer surface a smooth convex area over which an iron will pass easily without obstruction and without damage to the engagingparts of the fastener. The design is 1 also especially strong and will withstand the pressure of the iron or mangle.

My improvements may be applied to fasteners adapted to be sewed to the garment instead of clamped in place in the manner heretofore described. Where the fastener.

is to be invisible it is inexpedient to clamp the fabric between the two parts of the fastener and it is desirable that the fastener parts be adapted to be sewed on. A fastener of this type embodying my improvement is shown in Fig. 46, the inter-engaging parts being of the type shown in Figs. 112, although, of course, any of the other designs of engaging parts ma be employed instead. This fastener comprises merely upper and lower contact pieces 2 and 3 respectively, the piece 2 having a stud 8 adapted to pr ject into the socket of the lower piece in position to be engaged by the spring 18. The pieces 2 and 3 are of substantially the same shape as the corresponding pieces in the threadless fastener, and have the same advantages. To facilitate the fastener being sewed to the garment, and to prevent the thread from interfering with the proper engagement of the two members of the fastener, the shell 2 is provided on its under side with short grooves with holes at each end, as shown at 40 to receive the thread by means by which the member is attached to the under side of the fabric. The piece Pf is provided in. its contact face, that is the upper side, and in the flange forming the seat for the attaching spring, with holes 41 through which the needle may be passed in sewing the member to the garment. The holes in the upper face of the piece may be in the shape of elongated slots overlying two spaced holes in the flange, so that the stitches will lie across the inside of the flange.

It will particularly be noted that there are no projecting studs such as are an essential feature of the present style of fastener. These studs are the chief cause of trouble with ordinary fasteners, in that any material pressure on the end of the stud will flatten it out so that it will not fit the socket of the cooperating member, while side pressure on the stud in ironing frequently causes the fastener to be torn from the fabric.

It will, of course, be understood that the structure of the different parts shown may be modified in other ways than illustrated,

while retaining the essential features of my invention which are specified in the appended claims.

I claim;

1. A snap fastener comprising two members, one of said members comprising a socket and single cooperating stud of small cross sectional dimension, whereby said stud may be passed through a fabric without injury to the material, and an annular convex marginal portion surrounding and protecting the interengaging parts of the fastener.

2. In a snap fastener, the combination of two interengaging portions, each of said portions comprising a pair of parts clamped together with the fabric between them, one of said portions comprising a part having a central stud, an annular marginal portion completely surrounding said stud for clamping the fabric at its outer periphery and a second part having a socket for receiving said stud.

8. A snap fastener having two interengaging portions comprising, respectively, a pair of cooperating parts, the said cooperating parts being snapped into fixed engagement by means of a cooperating socket and stud provided on said parts, and independent means for maintaining a yielding engagement between the twoportions of the fastener.

4. A snap fastener consisting of two cooperating portions, one of said portions comprising two parts clamped together with the fabric between them, the outer of the said parts having a convex shell and the inner part having a convex shell of a curvature less than that of the outer part, whereby a material. pressure is exerted between the shells when said parts are clamped in operative position.

5. A snap fastener consisting of two portions, one of said portions having two coopcrating members, one said member having a convex shell comprising a number of sections formed by radial gashes extending from) the outer edge of the shell, and the other member having a curved shell adapted to be fitted against the shell of the other member, the curvature of the outer of said members being greater'than that of the inner member.

6. A. snap fastener comprising two members having a cooperating interlocking socket and stud, respectively, said stud carrying member having a base portion shaped to substantially surround said stud and of a height to protect the stud against flattening.

7. if snap fastener comprising two members having a cooperating interlocking socket and stud respectively, said stud carrying member having convex protecting sections formed by cutting away portions of an annular convex shell, such as would be the case if radial gashes were made in said shell.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

AUSTIN ROY BURRELL. 

